HOUSTON - Falling oil prices and related layoffs, limited housing inventory, and rising home prices contributed to the first decline in home sales the Houston market has seen in six months, according to the Houston Association of Realtors (HAR).

Sales of single-family homes dropped 5.8 percent year-over-year in February, led largely by faltering activity among homes priced above $500,000, which, until now, had been one of the market’s strongest and steadiest segments.

Months of inventory edged up slightly to a 2.7-months supply. That is still well below the current national supply of 4.7 months of inventory. Home prices achieved record highs for a February.

* The number of months it will take to deplete current active inventory based on the prior 12 months of sales activity. The market is considered evenly balanced between supply and demand when it has a six-month inventory.